Order of the Dark Knights
General Information The Order of Dark Knights is a small alliance, with 55 members. Although it may not be the largest alliance, it plays a role in CN politics. The Order was founded in the final months of 2006 by Dark Lords, The Lord Marshall and FoxVIII. Due to The Lord Marshall and FoxVIII leaving ODK Ashika and Olivia8907 were selected as the new Dark Lords. Later in July/August almost half the alliance left the alliance, with most becoming the new alliances of ACES and SPAM. Their forums are located here-> http://z15.invisionfree.com/CN_ODK. As a black team alliance, black nations are encouraged to join, but anyone is welcome. The ODK prides its self on the acceptance of all creeds, races, and ideals. All nations that fit their minimal criteria are welcomed with open arms. If you are interested in joining, go to the forums and follow the instructions. Great War Three In the fledgling stages of the conflict soon to become known as Great War Three, the Order of the Dark Knights issued a proclamation of neutrality http://z15.invisionfree.com/Cyber_Nations/index.php?showtopic=59532. It was stated that they would remain neutral and accept refugess, but their decision could change. Although they currently are not aligned with either side, they possibly could become a powerful ally to one side or another. Great War Four/Neo-Great War/Fractured Initiative War At the outbreak of the ODK made a declaration of neutrality http://forums.cybernations.net/index.php?showtopic=1297, citing the presence of friendly nations and alliances on both sides of the conflict along with the lack of treaties requiring defensive/offensive aid. The Dark Confederation ''Order of the Dark Knights '' ' Article I. Preamble' We the Order of the Dark Knights, henceforth known as ODK, pledge ourselves to ensuring the liberty, rights, and prosperity of our sovereign nations. This includes the support of all of our members in aid, war, and any situations that may cause harm to a member. ' Article II. Members' A. Membership a) You must pledge yourself and your nation to the allegiance of ODK B) You must not be in any other alliance. c) You must abide by the laws set forth by this charter and the laws of ODK. d) You must post a proper application on the ODK Forums. e) You must not be in any Offensive wars or wanted by any other alliance unless approved by a Grand Elder. f) You must abide by the laws of Cyber Nations. g) You must put your alliance affiliation as ODK Applicant. '' B. Recruits/Applicants'' All new recruits or applicants wishing to join ODK must post a proper application on our forums. Your application and nation will be reviewed by the High Council to see that your nation fits the stipulations, listed in Article II Paragraph A. If your nation does not fit the stipulations you and your nation will not be granted membership in the alliance. '' C. General'' As a member of ODK, you must not knowingly harm either the alliance or its members, a purposeful offense is considered an act of treason and will be dealt as such. All members are recognized as subjects of ODK and none are above the charter. '' D. Education'' All members must complete the educational training before being eligible for aid or government positions either elected or appointed. A formal education and test will be administered by the designated minister or the Grand Elders. '' E. Resignations'' You may leave ODK at any time. However, you may not join another alliance while in ODK. You may not entice others to join another alliance or make plans to recruit members from ODK while joining another alliance. You are also not permitted to make slanderous remarks about the alliance in your departure. When resigning, former members must pay back all foreign aid received from any aid programs while being in ODK. Failure to repay aid upon resigning will result in consequences which may include diplomacy with the said nation’s new alliance or attacks and ZI. This only applies to cases in which the aid received is more than the aid sent out. The High Council has the Authority to release all debt on a nation due to service above and beyond for ODK and its members. ' Article III. Government Positions' '' A. The High Council'' The High Council of ODK will consist of three Grand Elders who serve for a period of 6 Months. The High Council will oversee and direct the alliance in all matters foreign and domestic. The High Council shall be the only members of the alliance to hold the power to declare war. The High Council will also act as the Justice Department on all cases brought before the alliance. The High Council will be the full legislative power of the alliance. The High Council will hold and reserve all powers within the alliance unless otherwise stated in this charter. a) High Council Elections Every 2 months the High Council seat that was voted upon 6 months prior will be up for reelection. A High Council Member will be elected into office after a voting period of no less than 72hrs. The elections will be open to all members of ODK. If after the elections more than one winning candidates are found to be within 2 votes of each other, another election will be held to find the clear winner out of those candidates. There is no limit to the number of consecutive terms a High Council member may serve. '' A. The Cabinet'' As the alliance grows larger the need for greater help with matters foreign and domestic will arise. When the High Council deems the alliance large enough they may appoint members of the alliance to fill one or more ministerial positions. The High Council will set the job description and title of the Minister so that they may fill whatever need may arise. Ministers will work directly under the High Council. Ministers shall remain in office until removed by 2/3 vote from the Grand Elders. If the Ministry position is found to be no longer needed by the High Council it will be dissolved by 2/3 vote until the need for it arises again. B. Directors If the alliance grows to a size where more assistance is needed with matters foreign and domestic, the High Council may authorize the Minister(s) to appoint a director who will work directly under them and assist them further with the operations of the alliance. A director will remain in office until removed or replaced by 2/3 vote by the Grand Elders. If the director’s position is found to no longer be needed it will be dissolved by 2/3 vote by the Grand Elders until the need arises again. ' Article IV. Government' A. Triumvirate The ODK will always be a Triumvirate system with the three Grand Elders making up the elected body of the government and the Legislative power. B. Legislation Legislation can be brought forward by any member of the alliance whether it pertains to Internal Affairs or Foreign Affairs. This Legislation may include, but is not limited to, amendments to laws, treaties with other alliances, or internal reforms. All Legislation must pass a 2/3 vote by the High Council to be instituted into the alliance. a) In an effort to keep the voice of the people alive and to keep the alliance posted on all legislation that will be instituted into the alliance, a special “Announcements” thread will be added to the forum where all legislation must be announced for a period of no less than 24hrs before being instituted into the alliance. During this time all of the alliance is welcome to share their views, concerns, or approval. Article V. ODK Courts The Courts of the ODK will be run by the High Council who are the judges in all cases. All member nations of ODK have the right to a fair trial. All member nations have the right to know the charges that are being brought against them before they are put on trial. If after 72 hrs the offending member nation has not responded to any attempt to contact them, it will be assumed that the member nation has been informed of the trial and the charges and the trial will continue on in their absence. Verdicts of Guilty/Innocent may only be reached with no less than 2/3 vote by the High Council. Perma-ZI requires a 3/3 consensus by the High Council before it may be used as a punishment against a member nation. '' A. Enemy Vendetta List'' All Nations on the EVL list of ODK are nations who have been given various sentences by ODK. These sentences range from expulsions to ZI’s. All nations on the EVL are in a state of permanent and open warfare with the ODK. The EVL will be listed for all to see in the alliance forum. No nation listed on the EVL will be accepted into ODK as a member. B. Sentences a) probation- you will be required to post in a thread, made by the ODK Court, every so often a week. If you do not meet your requirements you will be given a harsher sentence. B) expulsion- the removal of your nation from ODK. If you try to join again you will be given a harsher sentence and will be reprimanded accordingly. c) half ZI- your nation will be attacked until your nation has lost half of its infrastructure. Any money, tech, or land taken by the attacking ODK nations will not be given back. d) full ZI- your nation will lose its entire infrastructure. Any money, tech, or land taken by attacking ODK nations will not be given back e) perma ZI- your nation will be in a constant state of war with a ODK Fire team and you will lose all infrastructures you owned previously to the sentence, and also any infrastructure you buy in the future. Any money, tech, or land taken by attacking ODK nations will not be given back. Article VI. Military Affairs ODK believes in diplomacy before war. Before we declare war we will use every diplomatic tool available to us, to ensure our nations stay safe and can grow without interruption. A. Warring As a member of ODK you are not allowed to war a nation without permission, unless unaligned. If an ODK member attacks an aligned nation without provocation and permission, that member will be put on trial by the High Council. The nation may be kicked out of the alliance and possibly named rogue and attacked by ODK. In the event that the nation is permitted to stay in the alliance, the ruler must pay reparations to the defending party as due. The ODK will use every possible diplomatic action before reverting to war. '' B. Nuclear Weapons'' The ODK allows its nations to purchase nuclear weapons to gain strength and power. However ODK nations will not use nuclear weapons as first strikes. All nuclear strikes must be approved by the High Council or the Commander of Armed Forces during a time of war. Any unauthorized nuclear strikes by a nation will result in punishment for the ODK nation which may include reparations, expulsion, or a state of zero infrastructures. '' C. Tech Raids'' The ODK condones tech raids as long as the nation being raided is unaligned. Any nation raiding an aligned nation will be dealt with accordingly. The nation being raided must also be at least 10 days inactive. Any damages done to the attacking ODK nation will not be repaired by the ODK. If the inactive nation becomes active again reparations must be paid to the raided nation. Any nation who has been raided by an ODK nation can appeal this in the ODK Courts in the Tech raid court. D. Spies and Spying The ODK does not condone the spying on other alliances forums by use of any means. Any member in ODK caught spying on another alliance will be charged with treason and be tried as such. The use of in games spies may only be used with the consent of the High Council. E. Declarations of War The High Council may only make a declaration of war against another alliance(s) with no less than a 3/3 consensus. During times of open warfare the Grand Elders must appoint a single person to be the Commander of Armed Forces and oversee and direct all military actions. The Commander of Armed Forces will retain control over all military actions until a state of peace is declared for the alliance. During open warfare all member nations listed as a “Banking” nation must enter into a state of Peace until the war is over or the Commander of Armed Forces directs them otherwise. If the ODK is attacked on an alliance wide scale by another alliance(s) the ODK is automatically in a state of open warfare with the offending alliance(s) and the High Council may take any action they deem necessary to ensure the safety and survival of the alliance. ' Article VII. Impeachment' In the event that a Grand Elder has shown to be against the will of the people an alliance wide vote may be raised to impeach the Grand Elder with no less than 51% majority of all active members within a 72hr period. An election will be held as soon as possible after the impeachment to replace the impeached Grand Elder. The newly elected Grand Elder will serve out the remainder of the impeached Grand Elder’s term in office. Article VIII. Amendments Any amendments made to this charter must pass a 2/3 alliance wide vote. Blocs See also